The morning mist still blanketed Eldridge's stone walls when the heavy city gate finally opened with a deafening creak. The massive explosion the previous night that had shaken the foundations of the ruler's palace had left a deep wound in the hearts of the citizens. Fear spread faster than the fires that had once burned the warehouses on the city outskirts. Whispers about the increasingly suffocating tyranny, unreasonable taxes, and hired soldiers beginning to seize ordinary citizens' property made many people choose to abandon everything.
That morning, it wasn't just Sylvia and her two sisters who were leaving Eldridge. The wide dirt road leading northeast had turned into a slow-flowing river of people and carriages. Dozens of wooden carts creaked, their iron wheels swaying over the uneven ground, creating a monotonous rhythm clop… clop… clop… mixed with the sound of horses' hooves, anxious quiet conversations, and the occasional tired cries of small children.
